Player Features and Ideas Discussion

Anti- Cloaking Module:

High Slot: Mountable only on Electronic Warfare/Strategic cruisers

Role Bonus: T1 EW Cruiser 2% per level bonus to heat damage per cycle
T2 EW Cruiser 5% per level bonus to heat damage and 2% reduction in cycle time.
T3 Strategic Cruiser 7.5% per level bonus to heat damage and 5% reduction in cycle time

Description: The Tachyon emitter merely overloads the cloaking devices ability to compensate. The Active Tachyon emitter achieves this by causing the cloaking device to the constantly shift because of moving random particles and cause cloaking device processors and equipment to overheat. While activated any ship to include friendly cloaked vessels will take heat damage to their cloaking devices. While activated the sheer amount of energy required for tachyons being emitted causes the ships navigational system to become inoperable and enter a siege like condition and increasing the sig radius of the ship by 1000%. The emitter is selectable based on the range the pilot believes the cloaked vessel is within. Selectable bands are the following doing the following HP (HEAT) damage to a cloaked vessel within range. Cycle is 60 seconds with the damage happening at the end of the cycle. The module causes aggression upon activation. To get a warp in to a ship who turns off his cloak to avoid damage or has his cloak burnt out will require normal combat scanning or tacklers. Multiple ships will have a cumulative effect. Device cannot be used in security level space >.5. Device used in low sec will only cause aggression if a cloaked vessel is within range of the emitters setting selector.

Distance: Heat Dmg

.25 AU: 5
.5 AU: 4
1.0 AU: 3
2.0 AU: 2
4.0 AU: 1
8.0 AU: .75
16.0 AU: .50
32.0 AU: .25
64.0 AU: .15
128.0 AU: .10


Background: The Caldari Empire analyzing the events leading up to the fall of Caldari prime began a massive research campaign spanning New Eden for a defense against cloaking technology. Careful investigation to the buildup of the event points to cloaked vessels escaping detection of Caldari Forces leading to the defeat of loyalist Caldari Forces. The research method of dissemination throughout New Eden paid off quickly; however, Gallente, Minmatar and Amarr’ian governments quickly grabbed the technology and adapted the research to their own fleets. Now disseminated throughout New Eden Active Anti-Cloaking technology has become a basis for early warning detection against cloaking fleets and AFK grievers!

another noob trying to fix something what's working fine?

Sounds way overpowered. And not really needed.

Soo....
whats the balance. You see that theres someone cloaked in system, or you're guessing that there is (WH space, or possible localless future)

Your whole gang switches out for this particular anticloaking method. Everyone cycles their mod. And the cloaker gets nailed with 20 of these blasts.

Now precious few systems are 256AU across Which even in a system like that there'd be no defense, cause all your anticaloakers would need to do is blob up on the sun and cycle their pingers.

Maybe I could see this units usage if the range was reduced to like 8AU max (so you actually need to disperse out your pingers, while hunting). But unlike many other suggestions for anticloaking gear, its far to simple in that its a single button you can press. That theres no escape from if you get hit by since you get locked down for a min or 2.

I guess it might balance slightly with the "friendly ships" clause in there. But all it would require is the FC calling out, bombers SS up and decloak for a few secs while we ping.



Also Robert, in some peoples opinion its working fine in others its not. Many people agree that as far as scouting is concerned, its far too easy. Just take a bomber, hide in a safespot in some system. And sit there on Dscan watching ships enter an leave, telling his FC what they're about to come up against. Nothing that the defenders can do about this. Also stealthed ships have it far too easy in that one can run a normal cyno and bam hotdrop a fleet without any way to counter other then to run and hide before the bomber has a chance to find you.
Most of these suggestions simply are trying ot make it so that a cloaker actualyl has to do some work, rather then being perfectly safe.
You wanna sit in system for 6 horus straight, AFK or not. Then you risk being searched out and assaulted.

But at the same time, every time you enter an argument, all I see is you claiming that it doesn't need a change. And I went and read about 20 old anticloaking or nerf cloaking threads. Virtually the only arguement held against anticloaking anything: Thats fuel run cloaks, delayed local, 10 min cycle timer on cloaks, and into anticloaking dessys(seems to be a heavy focus on a dessy being the anticloaking ship) and modules.
Is always, "shouldn't be changed, working fine" Occasionally you see a "it'll kill scouting" but thats only usually in the more powerful anticloaking gear threads. But from what I've read there's no real argument to protect cloaking's infallibility other then "we don't want a way for people to counter our current power"

Also on the claim that WH corps deal with the problem of cloaked ships every day.
This is because WH corps have a couple layers of protection. 1 their mining fleets are almost always operating in a site that has to be probed out. They see unknown probes, they hide (first rule of WH space). Second they are immune to hotdropping, which is the other major fear of cloaks in 0.0, Then the last is a handful of bombers popping out and shooting a ratting ship at an anom or an asteroid belt. Which that persists just like in normal space, but in WHs, theres usually groups doing sites rather then soloists you see everywhere in null. So a bomber, or a small gang of them (4-6) doesn't stand a chance of taking out anything too expensive when they warp into the current ratting site)

Amazing how many threads are going on about trying to hunt down cloaking ships. I find it amusing to say the least the ones that complain the most about the forum posts are the ones that love to pvp. All these idea's invite more ways for PvP. In Eve right now most everything has a counter balance to an item. Right now one of these that need a countering is cloaking. There needs to be a way to counter cloaking. I am not the only one that thinks this is true.

no, impending constant threat to 0.0 bears is required and a good thing.

Being able to eliminate this threat would result in safest carebear places in all eve, which isnt good at all.

Better almost total safety for cloakers who arent gaining anything while afk cloaked than total safety for bears producing ISK non stop and inflating the markets.

To the contrary, I love to PvE.

Specifically, I am not at liberty to properly compete against other miners and ratters, since the bar is too low.
They are all being given a free pass by means of free intel.

My competition is being denied proper opportunity to DIAF by this overly simple mechanic protecting them.

I want cloaked ships as well as regular ships more able to effectively hunt, and by so doing give me opportunity to compete by making better effort than other PvE pilots.

Blow up already, and stop devaluing my ore by mining so much of it.

Yet another poster starting a thread in order to protect their mining bots.

Use the search function similar ideas have been posted before. They also got shot down in flames.

Also from a game balance point of view it is an incredible bad idea to counter it I would suggest that any such module should also prevent mining lasers from firing for the duration.

Secondly you decide how you react to a cloaked ship. If you dock up, hide and don't mine or make any attempt to counter the cloaked ship or prepare for enemy combatants then you are the player with the problem, not the cloaker.

It is the job of other players to provide you with the risk that affects your decision making in game.

Just my .02, Let others see the Predator style cloak effect that you do on your screen.

This means that to find you they need to LOOK for you.

I know some drivers can be hacked to let you see other textures as bright colors but that would be a ban in EvE. Also not sure how video card performance or setting would effect this.

If you are hunting a cloaky alone it will be tough but with more eyes it could be done, especially if they are AFK.

Yes, it is easy to avoid by flying 'up' when going AFK but it means they will be off grid soon.

It goes beyond this.

AFK Cloaking is, currently, the ONLY counter to Local and one of the FEW ways for a small group to inflict any sort of damage against a vastly larger/superior force.

Allow me to explain...

When you are doing your own thing in a null-sec system and a "non-blue" appears in local... what is the first thing you do? You warp back to station, to a POS, or a safespot and cloak up. You then wait until the "non-blue" loses interest or a group of your PvP people come to smash the lonely person. Once gone, back to business as usual.

As that "non-blue" who occasional roams around null-sec it is infuriatingly difficult or downright impossible to grab miners, ratters, etc when Local chat immediately announces my presence as soon as I enter a system.

So... what do I do? Resort to SOV grind? No... I'm a "small fry" in the grand scheme of things... but I shouldn't be rendered completely unable to do any sort of damage besides some wasted time.

Enter the AFK Cloaker. It sits and sits and sits and completely devalues Local as an intel tool... giving the small groups who enjoy guerilla warfare a means to ply their trade again.


But what about cynos and hotdrops? That's a mechanic separate from cloaking. The problem is when they are combined together.

Defenses? You have them too. You just have to think more in terms of defensive/reactionary tactics rather than proactive/"all or nothing" style tactics.

- PvP-fit your own ship (ex. warp disruptor, Warrior II drones, heavy energy neutralizer, etc).
- rat, mine, or run complexes with a buddy or two in PvP ships (my favorites are insta-locking artillery ships).
- get everyone into the same fleet and have one or two people in combat interceptors on standby at all times.
- alter your PvE tactics... range and speed tank rather than sit and absorb damage.
- use cheaper ships you won't mind replacing if something bad happens (ex. don't use a Faction Battleship or Carrier when a T1 battleship or battlecruiser will do).
- use different kinds of ships that are better suited for hostile engagements (ex. use a Procurer versus a Hulk).

And keep in mind that a cloaky person will only decloak and attack someone he/she THINKS they can kill (which is actually a very short list)... EVEN IF THEY HAVE A CYNO (they have to live long enough to get everyone through). If you make yourself appear to be more trouble than you are worth, then you will be relatively safe.